Is Eating Shrimp a Sin in Christianity? 2 Best Must Read Answers
C.J Ahmed-11.04.2023
Eating shrimp is normally accepted and eaten by secular Christians the world over but some religious Christians despise eaing shrimp stating that it is forbidden in the bible. As far as the bible is concerned, eating shrimp is forbidden because of the various verses in the bible which forbid eting sea creature which do not have fins and scales.
Answer-1
The bible forbids eating sea creatures like shrimp baed on the below verses,
“Of all the creatures living in the water of the seas and the streams, you may eat any that have fins and scales. But all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and scales--whether among all the swarming things or among all the other living creatures in the water--you are to detest.”( Leviticus 11:9-12)
“Of all that are in the waters you may eat these: whatever has fins and scales you may eat. And whatever does not have fins and scales you shall not eat; it is unclean for you. (Deuteronomy 14:9-10)
The above verses although does not specifically mention shrimp, does forbid eating creatures living in the water which does not have fins of scale. Shrimp falls in to the category of marine creatures that has no fins or scales. Based on the above verses in the old testament which is the Torah, eating shrimp is unlean and prohibited for Christians.
Answer-2
Most modern day Christians will state that eating shrimpis not a sin because what was forbidden was forbidden in the law of Moses and the new testament does not forbid eating shrimp. The argument is based on the following vere in the new testament which is used as an argument to prove that Jesus allowed eating all food as they were clean.
“Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them. “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them.”(Matthew 15:16-18)
The above verses in the bible should be understood based on what context Jesus said “whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them”. The full story is as follows,
“Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
“‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.’”
Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.”
Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”
He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. Leave them; they are blind guides. If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.”
Peter said, “Explain the parable to us.”
“Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them. “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.”( Matthew 15-1-20)
The pharisees asked Jesus about his deciples eating food without washing their hands and Jesus replied by saying that what comes out from the mouth is from the heart meaning evil thoughts and whatever you eat will come out of your body meaning that eating food with unwashed hands will not defile the food which you eat. So the meaning here is not that Jesus declared all food to be clen, wht he mentioned was that wating food without wshing your hands will still go out of your body as waste and what comes from your heart is from your evil thoughts. This verse in the bible has nothing to do with the allowance of eating any food that was declared prohibited in the old testament. This verse is taken out of context and is misinterpreted using ones own interpretation and not Jesus’s words. In another vere Jesus explains it even further by saying,
“What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, those evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance, and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”(Mark 7: 20-22)
Jesus Christ ordered to follow his teaching without omitting anything. He said,
“For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle, shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” (Matthew 5:18)
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.”(Matthew 5:17-18)
So Jesus did not come to change any old laws of the earlier prophets including Moses but ordered his deciples to follow them as well and no law should be changed or altered but has to be followed.
According to the teachings of the bible, it is clear that eating shrimp is a sin but modern day Christians do eat shrimp, pork and other foods which were originally forbidden thinking that verses such as in mark and elsewhere in the new testament made all foods permissible which is wrong and taken out of context and has nothing to do with the dietary laws which were mentioned in the old testament.
Conclusion
Eating shrimp is forbidden in the bible because shrimp does not have fins or scales and secular Christians do eat shrimp, more religious and conservertive Christians do keep away from eating shrimp due to it been prohibited in the bible.
Eating shrimp is normally accepted and eaten by secular Christians the world over but some religious Christians despise eaing shrimp stating that it is forbidden in the bible. As far as the bible is concerned, eating shrimp is forbidden because of the various verses in the bible which forbid eting sea creature which do not have fins and scales.
Answer-1
The bible forbids eating sea creatures like shrimp baed on the below verses,
“Of all the creatures living in the water of the seas and the streams, you may eat any that have fins and scales. But all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and scales--whether among all the swarming things or among all the other living creatures in the water--you are to detest.”( Leviticus 11:9-12)
“Of all that are in the waters you may eat these: whatever has fins and scales you may eat. And whatever does not have fins and scales you shall not eat; it is unclean for you. (Deuteronomy 14:9-10)
The above verses although does not specifically mention shrimp, does forbid eating creatures living in the water which does not have fins of scale. Shrimp falls in to the category of marine creatures that has no fins or scales. Based on the above verses in the old testament which is the Torah, eating shrimp is unlean and prohibited for Christians.
Answer-2
Most modern day Christians will state that eating shrimpis not a sin because what was forbidden was forbidden in the law of Moses and the new testament does not forbid eating shrimp. The argument is based on the following vere in the new testament which is used as an argument to prove that Jesus allowed eating all food as they were clean.
“Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them. “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them.”(Matthew 15:16-18)
The above verses in the bible should be understood based on what context Jesus said “whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them”. The full story is as follows,
“Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
“‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.’”
Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.”
Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”
He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. Leave them; they are blind guides. If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.”
Peter said, “Explain the parable to us.”
“Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them. “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.”( Matthew 15-1-20)
The pharisees asked Jesus about his deciples eating food without washing their hands and Jesus replied by saying that what comes out from the mouth is from the heart meaning evil thoughts and whatever you eat will come out of your body meaning that eating food with unwashed hands will not defile the food which you eat. So the meaning here is not that Jesus declared all food to be clen, wht he mentioned was that wating food without wshing your hands will still go out of your body as waste and what comes from your heart is from your evil thoughts. This verse in the bible has nothing to do with the allowance of eating any food that was declared prohibited in the old testament. This verse is taken out of context and is misinterpreted using ones own interpretation and not Jesus’s words. In another vere Jesus explains it even further by saying,
“What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, those evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance, and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”(Mark 7: 20-22)
Jesus Christ ordered to follow his teaching without omitting anything. He said,
“For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle, shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” (Matthew 5:18)
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.”(Matthew 5:17-18)
So Jesus did not come to change any old laws of the earlier prophets including Moses but ordered his deciples to follow them as well and no law should be changed or altered but has to be followed.
According to the teachings of the bible, it is clear that eating shrimp is a sin but modern day Christians do eat shrimp, pork and other foods which were originally forbidden thinking that verses such as in mark and elsewhere in the new testament made all foods permissible which is wrong and taken out of context and has nothing to do with the dietary laws which were mentioned in the old testament.
Conclusion
Eating shrimp is forbidden in the bible because shrimp does not have fins or scales and secular Christians do eat shrimp, more religious and conservertive Christians do keep away from eating shrimp due to it been prohibited in the bible.